Overview
- The early-stage study is scheduled to begin next year with two volunteers who have lost the ability to speak because of neurological disease.
- Paradromics’ Connexus uses a penetrating microwire array in the motor cortex linked by a subcutaneous lead to a powered wireless transceiver implanted in the chest.
- The trial targets decoding attempted speech into on-screen text or real-time synthetic voice, with plans to clone a participant’s voice when recordings exist, marking the first BCI trial to formally pursue synthetic-voice generation.
- Researchers will also test imagined hand movements for computer cursor control, with a potential expansion to as many as ten participants and bilateral implants pending early safety and performance data.
- Paradromics cites preclinical results showing 200 bits per second in sheep and reports a prior 10-minute intraoperative human test, with the new study shifting to long-term implantation to assess safety and communication efficacy.